Kell on Earth: “We delivered beauty to the streets of New York City.”

Oh, Kell on Earth. We hardly knew ye. Last night was the season finale of everyone’s favorite fashion PR reality show, and unlike the cheap dramatic ploys used by shows that we all love to hate (Real Housewives, I’m looking at you), the finale focused on the cast members doing their jobs and how much Kelly Cutrone’s employees love and appreciate their boss.

If you had told me before this show started that it was going to be about likable people doing their everyday jobs, I would have told you that it would never work – reality television needs to give its viewers a good dose of schadenfreude or everyone gets bored. Somehow, though, Cutrone & Co. pulled it off. The show made me want to move to New York, work at People’s Revolution, and buy a DKNY Cozy sweater (although that last part is just a side effect of Monday night’s episode and not the series as a whole).

The last episode of the season (though hopefully not of the series!) found the ladies and gentlemen of People’s Revolution planning both a guerilla video shoot for a DKNY sweater called the “Cozy” and a guerilla surprise party for Kelly’s birthday. Surprisingly, both looked like a lot of fun. These folks may work long hours for limited pay, but at least their jobs involve things that can be described as “guerilla” from time to time. We should all be so lucky.

The idea for the shoot was to have an army of Power Girls (here, represented by models) in different-colored Cozies (which you can apparently wear a nearly infinite number of different ways) marching through the streets of New York City, looking awesome and privileged and like you want to buy whatever it is that makes them look that way. Kelly chose to go sans permits, so filming while people were milling around and traffic was passing through provided a few problems.

Staging an impromptu shoot in the middle of New York didn’t cause nearly the chaos that I figured it would, however, and the limited security that Kelly brought along (it apparently made a REALLY BIG DIFFERENCE that they were Irish-American) managed to get the cops off their backs long enough to film in front of iconic landmarks like the giant US flag on Wall Street and the Washington Square Park arch. The sweaters looked great, the shoot idea fit DKNY’s ultra-NYC brand image, and we got to see Kelly at her best – a PR coup all around.

What I liked most about this part of the episode, however, was Kelly’s interaction with her daughter. Ava and a friend came to see her mom when they were shooting near home, and Kelly talked about how it was important to her that her daughter saw women working together, creating positive things, and being good role models. If all moms thought so intelligently about how their children perceive the women around them, then the world would be a better place. I, for one, hope that Kelly has more kids – she should be raising as many as possible, based on everything we’ve seen about Ava.

The other half of the guerilla episode was perpetrated by Andrew and Skinner in an attempt to throw Kelly a surprise birthday party at the Carlyle Hotel. As you could probably guess, Kelly is hard to surprise because she has a finely tuned BS meter and doesn’t hide in an office, away from her employees all day, so they had to be extra surreptitious in planning the venue, catering and guest list (no interns allowed!)

They also had to be careful to hide their intentions from the place that they were going to try cake samples, since most bakeries only do tasting sessions for weddings. Obviously, that meant that they had to pretend that they were engaged, which maybe wasn’t entirely believable since he was wearing a skirt the entire time. I’m sure that there’s a male skirt-enthusiast out there somewhere that has married a lady before, however, plus Andrew had gotten down on one knee on a street corner to give her an “engagement ring” on the way to the tasting, so they got to gorge themselves on free cake anyway.

Problems arose, however, when it was time to decide what the bakery should write on the cake. Since they had claimed to be looking for a wedding cake, having them write “Happy Birthday Kelly” wasn’t really an option if the ruse was to be sustained. Ultimately, they went with “Congratulations Mr. & Ms. Mukamal” and Kelly smeared it out when presented with the cake at her party.

Actually getting Kelly in the door was also an issue. Since she has a mind of her own, she kind of wanted to bail on the cocktail hour that she thought she was going to (I usually get the urge to bail last-minute on stuff like that too, so I was nervous for a moment that she actually would), but Robyn did a bang-up job of keeping her out of the (secretly empty) office and herding her, swag bags in tow, toward the Carlyle.

She was a little early, but things mostly went off without a hitch and Kelly was so surprised and happy that she actually cried a little bit and didn’t even make herself go outside. The party itself may or may not have been set up by producers (thanks to Real Housewives, I’m forever skeptical of “parties” on Bravo reality shows), but I think it’s pretty safe to say that Kelly didn’t know about it and that Andrew, Skinner and the rest of the People’s Rev crew have a genuine affection for Kelly that not many employees have for the higher-ups.

The finale (and indeed the entire season) was sweet without being saccharine, “reality television” without being too dubiously real, and a somewhat honest look at the sometimes glam, oftentimes not-glam side of the fashion world that lots of college girls and gays dream of entering. Kelly Cutrone may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but people with strong personalities rarely are, and I think anyone would be hard-pressed to say that she’s not doing a good job raising both her daughter and her Power Girls (and Boys) in Training.

Ok, Amanda, I’ll have to admit it, this was a good episode. It didn’t feel “forced” with manufactured drama as I had mentioned in my last review’s comment.
I even liked Andrew this time around. I thought it was sweet how he dropped down on one knee to propose to Skinner. And it was hilarious to see them keep up with the charade at the bakery.
I’ll give this a go around the next season and maybe Kelly will grow on me.

Tanya

I have loved Kelly since she appeared on The Hills years ago. She has a passion for what she does and every now and then she can surprise you. I really enjoyed this show I hope it comes back for a second season. (fb)

hannah

i was looking forward to seeing your recap on the show!! i fell in love with Kell on Earth and really hope they bring it back!! another awesome moment of the show was when Andrew hid the cake on the floor that she was renting out, which wasn;t theres to use, and he duct taped the fridge and put a chair in front of it hahaha!!
kelly’s tears were completely genuine and it was so sweet her talking about how much they mean to her, her not having a man or child old enough to do those things for her, and how truly appreciative she was about the party! and telling herself to cry outside hahaha!!
and those fur shoes = fierce!! they were MADE for her fierceness to wear!!!
her security guys were spot on about bringing them,and i think the dkny shoot showed just how aweosme she is at her job in her element — keeping everyone at task, making them feel welcome and at home (wishing the models a good drinking night hahah), making sure they got finished without overtime, and hiring awesome Irish guys to talk the language of security in front of Wall st. (which is beyonddd brutal 24/7 anyways)
all in all, they all left the drama at the door for the finale, kept things super mellow, kept me loving andrew and skinner and their cake-tasting (awesome idea!) and hoping the show hurries back soon!

hannah

i love her spot on honesty (which is 99% of the time true), all black attire, dont care attitude, and plan on picking up her book asap! i think iliano should move back to the states so they can have more babies like ava!! she needs a fan page! love her!!!
(fb)

Sorral

You had me laughing out loud at this line.

“The party itself may or may not have been set up by producers (thanks to Real Housewives, Iâ€™m forever skeptical of â€œpartiesâ€ on Bravo reality shows)”

I KNOW RIGHT! Because every single time they do this there is the obligatory come-over-to-my-house-lets-drink-wine-and-plan-a-party-so-everyone-who-hates-each-other-feels-awkward. AND the parties are always uber lame, at least in the OC or Atlanta, with the RHONY they have lavish events where more than just the cast shows up.

Patsy

I LOVE LOVE LOVE this show! Kelly Cutrone and her staff are fabulous–get rid of the Housewives and bring on more shows with real people running (working) for real companies in different parts of the country. This was much more interesting and FUN to watch!! The Housewives franchise has turned into a Jerry Springer type show and just trash to watch (whic I don’t anymore).
I love the Kelly Cutrone, Jeff Lewis and Rachel Zoe shows-much better Bravo!

http://www.purseblog.com/ Amanda Mull

Confession: I like all of those shows better than Housewives as well. Maybe we’ll recap Zoe when her show comes back? I’ll have to run it by bosslady (Megs).

Rosanna

I loved the cake scene LOL. Andrew is so funny =P

I’m a little sad that this season is over! I have a lot of respect for Kelly and you can tell she works really hard at her job. Hope she’s renewed for a second season!

Rosanna

for to add: (fb)

Jami Pellerin

I want marc jacobs!! ahh! (fb)

Jocelyn

Seems like a very interesting show. Great write up on what happened! :D (fb)

Triniti

Huge Fan, enough said! (fb)

Lydia

I finally found this show online and will be watching IMMEDIATELY. (fb)

Gelynn

I love it!!! (fb)

amy

NJ wives are back! Cant wait. Side note and actually related: it would be nice see if Bravo signs for seconds.

Jessica

didn’t watch it but kinda wish i did now that im reading other peoples comments(fb)

Emily

Good show! Lots of DRAMA (fb)

Reese

Anyone know if its getting picked up for a second season? I hope so.
Now the big question is: are you going to recap Christian’s show that replaces Kell on Earth’s time slot next week? (fb)

http://www.purseblog.com/ Amanda Mull

Bravo hasn’t made renewal decisions yet, according to what Andrew and Kelly have been saying on Twitter.

I don’t think I’m going to recap Christian’s show because I think that it’s a one-off special instead of a series, unless a bunch of people want me to. If you guys want it, I can do it!

Tiffany

Anyone know what designer those shoes were? Where to get them? I so want those shoes they gave Kelly! LOL! I really hope this show has a 2nd season, it is grrreat! This episode was really chill, compared to the last ones..lol

http://www.purseblog.com/ Amanda Mull

I asked Andrew on Twitter and he said that they were Nicholas Kirkwood. I think they’re likely sold out, but he has a list of stores that carry his shoes round the world at http://www.nicholaskirkwood.com/

Tiffany

ohh wow thanks so much for that info! I will take a look at the link!

PhotoGirl

Excellent recap of an excellent show.

I hope that Kelly, the crew, and Ava (darling Ava!) come back for more.
Kell on Earth, Top Chef, and the Rachel Zoe Project are the only shows I can bear to watch on Bravo these days. (As a commenter mentioned above, the Real Housewives franchise has gone much too far down Jerry Springer Lane for my tastes.) I hope that in their infinite wisdom Bravo doesn’t find some way to ruin these programs, too.

Jenna

I haven’t watched all the episodes yet, so I didn’t read your whole review but am looking forward to it!

Jenna

(FB)

Lisa

Didn’t catch all the episodes this season, really wish I had. Great recap though! (fb)

Tiffany

OMG! i just found those goat hair booties, on NicholasKirkwood.com
But alas they are only in a size 6..they are on sale though!

When you’re watching Kell On Earth you’re watching a full blown Malignant Narcissist in all it’s glory.

One of these people typically statistically effects 20 others very very negatively just by existing.
Listen people, if someone else has such problems, and you find YOURSELF having to take a pill because of them, then…run.
Cleckley would tell you these people are just one step below a full blown psychopath.
Make no mistake everyone, Malignant (like a cancer) Narcissists are unlike any other Narcs you’ll find.
They’re not your average run of the mill Narcs or reality stars you’ll see on tv.
This isn’t any “Snooki” or even a Whitney or Bobbie Brown.
They’re LETHAL.
Your first clue is that they very very very very quickly enmesh themselves in your PERSONAL LIFE and you into theirs. Notice all the “dating” hook ups always being arranged? The very random “go and do for me…” b.s.? It’s a smoke screen. Malignant Narcs are close to ABSOLUTELY NO ONE – they’re truly truly truly out only for themselves – so they very very quickly work to “create” a perception of closeness. The REAL reason for this is simple. It’s for control. Narcs instinctively know that to destroy they need to control and the fastest and easiest way to do that is from the inside.
Period.
Like a cancer.
Malignant.
A regular Narc is simply all about themselves and couldn’t give a flip if you never dated anyone…in fact, they’d prefer it because it means more time spent on them.
Malignant Narcs are forever enmeshing and involving you in BS simply so they can rip the rug right out from under you. Repeatedly.
Simple.
So, by all means, sit down with your children for every episode and enjoy the show. Support it for all it’s worth.
Let’s all tell Bravo we want EVEN MORE Malig. Narcs on their shows. More than they already have.
Lets ALL make this flavor of psycho the new norm.
Make these lethal dreadful people the new “norm”, but don’t forget to watch with your children everyone, so they’ll know what to expect when they grow up and leave the home and have to deal with these types of psycho’s thanks viewers deeming them worth some bizarre form of entertainment value and thus acceptable now in the general population as the new normal.

These Malignant Narcs are having kids and creating more malignant narcs so if you truly enjoy being “entertained” by them and would like to show your support for them by your continued viewing, the very least you could do for your normal kids is watch with them and discuss it so they’ll either a) know how to spot one and thus…run for their lives or B) model themselves after them in order to damage others also.
The choice is yours.
Enjoy.

But I’ll tell you right now though, if your work day even remotely resembles what working for her is like, and you for whatever reason have convinced yourself to stay in that environment, you’re already damaged. You already so damaged that you can no longer even see that you should have left there long ago, that there’s truly nothing normal about it. It’s now sadly, only your “norm”.
Don’t do it to your kids.
Or the rest of us for that matter.
Don’t ever make what a Malignant Narcissist ever does be considered…”normal” or even entertaining.
There’s quite a bit of difference between Zoe and all her drama and Kell’s now isn’t there.
Kell’s is completely fabricated by….Kell. She fabricates scenarios by purposely leaving things in a constant state of chaos. A Malignant Narcs normal is no where near anything like what normal actually is. And the cameras have absolutely nothing to do with it.

Jeff from “flipping out” only took what? One season? To manage to get his Asst. and her husband divorced? After 10 yrs. of marriage?
Nice.
There’s a whooooooooole lot more than OCD going on with that guy people.
Also a malignant Narc.
My male OCD friend has been around us all for 20 yrs. and he hasn’t managed to break anyone one of my friends marriages up at all. Ever. Not even close.
Hmmmm….maybe it’s just that he’s an underachiever – lol!
Either way, Enjoy.
And don’t forget your kids.

Jane

I lalalalove this show so much!!! I hope it comes back for a second season. I want to move to NY, work at PR, and hang out with Kelly, Skinner, and Andrew. I want to be Andrew’s new bff so badly. Honestly, I would love to be Kelly’s nanny. There would be nothing I would love more than hanging out with Kelly and her daughter. It is the best show, I am so so so sad its done for the season. This is the first show that I have been sad that the season ended since Project Runway with Christian.

Jane

forgot (fb)

kellie wilson

I hate the fact I have missed this entire season. WHen is it coming out on dvd?? FB

Sherry

Missed the show. Traveling. Thanks for the recap.

Paula_Rose

Love it, Hope this show comes back season after season! (fb)

Alia Bustamante

im a hardcore fan of this show!!! i hope a season 2 is on the works! Shows (reality’s) like this one should stick around, not that cr*** Reality “High Society” BTW, im trying to find the eps online but thy are nowhere to be found! (fb)

lily

this blog helped me find the show! (fb)

Brigette

I don’t understand what’s holding Bravo back from securing a second season! What a great episode. Loved everything about it…going to miss these badass chicks (perhaps Andrew even more) on my TV!
(fb)

Swags

I wasn’t sure how I felt about this show after the first episode. It didn’t seem very exciting to watch these people work extremely long days and put up with 3 women shooting “where’s this?” at them every 5 minutes.

I have to say although I enjoy watching Kelly, I thought the assistants made the show. Andrew and Skinner were so fun together. They seem like great work buddies who make the most of their days by grabbing coffees and cake tasting. Making a pound cake in the break room or offering Skinner some cin bun ice cream (I want to try that but those pints of ice cream have like a thousand calories)

I did not like the 2 partners. They looked like witches most of the time. I can imagine if they came off like that on camera that they are actually a bigger pain in the ass to work for in real life.

Overall, a decent Monday night show to ease you into the week. (FB)

Kendra

Ya, not very exciting for the show, but pretty cool! (fb)

ceejay

thanks for the recap! (fb)

Paula

This is kinda cool!! (fb) Thanks

christine

missed this episode! of all the ones to miss too :(
hoping to catch it on a rerun! (fb)

SelÃ¨ne

Does anybody know how to get or where to watch this show if youâ€™re living outside of the US?
Iâ€™ve searched the internet but only succeeded in finding the first 2 episodes and Iâ€™m craving for this show..

Thanks in advance!

Allison

I started watching this show with extreme trepidation, but I grew to love the employees and the different roles/characters they play in the office. It ended up being one of my favorite reality shows. I hope hope hope it comes back for another season! (fb)

Jocelyn

I don’t watch!

Tag for Linea Pelle (fb)

Karen

i love ths show so much. Kelly is awesome. She’s the kind f chick I totally want to be friends with! She’s such a smart, intelligent ballsy woman! how can you not love that!? And Andrew. I want his closet. And for him to be into girls and marry me! (fb)

yorker

It’s nice to see Kelly has her interns hard at work posting on blogs to try to get her show renewed. I suspect too many people have figured out what a sociopathic fraud this women is for that to happen. Maybe she can give talks on how damaging meth is instead, or go back to Syracuse a get a degree.

Joy

ooh nicee, kelly
(fb)

debbie

got to have the goat hair boots, where can I find them in a 5.5?
LOVE THEM!!
GREAT TASTE KELL!